4xe Rubicon Off-Road In Electric Mode

[Wandering_Cascadian]

Took my 4xe Rubicon to run Cedar Tree #13 in Oregon two weeks ago, and had some questions from it.

Put her in 4-Low electric only mode to start the day, and first thing I noticed was it shifted REALLY hard between 1st and 2nd. I'm running 35" tires, but was wondering if anyone else has experienced this? Not sure if it's just the tires with the 4.10 rear gears and 4:1 low transfer case, but wasn't fun. But when I put it in e-save with the engine running, she shifted smooth as can be and ran great.

Also, when trying to run electric a while later, it finally threw a check engine light and forced me out of electric mode altogether, saying the hybrid system needed service. Ran the rest of the trail with the engine running no problem, and after a couple power cycles could run in electric mode again, and CEL went away after a day or two.

Just looking to see if anyone else had a similar experience.

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[Litfury]

Sorry to hijack your thread. Can't speak to this experience.

Are you running the 35's with no lift? If so any trouble off roading with rubbing?
I've ordered a 4xE and was wanting to try 35s without a lift if possible.

Thanks!

 

[Wandering_Cascadian]

Are you running the 35's with no lift? If so any trouble off roading with rubbing?
I've ordered a 4xE and was wanting to try 35s without a lift if possible.

Thanks!

35x12.5 Wildpeak AT3W, no lift, stock wheels. No rubbing around town, did see what looks like one small rub spot in the front fender liner washing up after the trails, but I'm comfortable with no lift still. Looks the best imo too.

 

[Gazelle]

...
Just looking to see if anyone else had a similar experience.

Yes, I explored Stampede Pass last Thursday and used low range while under the power lines up there. Shifting 1 to 2 was harsh. It didn't concern me much as all other shifting was fine when back in 4H, 4auto, or 2wd. I was in hybrid mode during the time. First time stuck in the snow with this Jeep.

I also saw a CEL with the "Service Hybrid Electric Vehicle System" message, but that was last Friday on a different, much easier trail (up to Sugarloaf Lookout from the Goose Crk Campground near Lake Wenatchee). I was in 4H, the weather was quite warm, and I had been driving up a steep, rutted forest road with a full load of passengers and camping gear.

The CEL cleared after several re-starts, but reappeared on Monday in our extreme heat (105F). The CEL and message has cleared again, but I will bring it in for a service & 1st oil change tomorrow. Hopefully, they will be able to read some codes.

 

[Wandering_Cascadian]

Guess it's good to know I wasn't the only one. Was a bit disappointing to not run the trail in pure electric with how much it has been promoted. For what amount I was able to do the silent offroading really is amazing.

With the engine on it was still an absolute beast. Don't think I scraped the underside once with the 35s on. Spent over a grand on skids and rock rails and don't think I touched a single one But was worth it for the peace of mind if I had.

That 2nd pic is stunning btw!

 

[tactical_gnr]

35x12.5 Wildpeak AT3W, no lift, stock wheels. No rubbing around town, did see what looks like one small rub spot in the front fender liner washing up after the trails, but I'm comfortable with no lift still. Looks the best imo too.

Do you have pics of your 4xe with the 35s? I’m also considering your setup (35s, stock rims, stock lift), and am curious how it looks.

To get back on topic, I have only gone off-road once and didn’t have an issue running pure electric. I plan to do more, so hopefully I won’t run into the issue you had.

 

[GATORB8]

35x12.5 Wildpeak AT3W, no lift, stock wheels. No rubbing around town, did see what looks like one small rub spot in the front fender liner washing up after the trails, but I'm comfortable with no lift still. Looks the best imo too.

Would there be room on the opposite side of the fender liner to push it back a little? The guys on the ram forum use a heat gun/wet towel method to slowly soften the liners and mold them back a little to gain clearance.

 

[Wandering_Cascadian]

Do you have pics of your 4xe with the 35s? I’m also considering your setup (35s, stock rims, stock lift), and am curious how it looks.

Ask and ye shall receive!

 

[tactical_gnr]

Ask and ye shall receive!

Looks great! Thanks for posting!

 

[Litfury]

Thanks for posting the pics. Exactly what I wanted to see as well. Think I’ll go 35s with no lift for a while after I get mine.

 

[CsD]

Took my 4xe Rubicon to run Cedar Tree #13 in Oregon two weeks ago, and had some questions from it.

Put her in 4-Low electric only mode to start the day, and first thing I noticed was it shifted REALLY hard between 1st and 2nd. I'm running 35" tires, but was wondering if anyone else has experienced this? Not sure if it's just the tires with the 4.10 rear gears and 4:1 low transfer case, but wasn't fun. But when I put it in e-save with the engine running, she shifted smooth as can be and ran great.

Also, when trying to run electric a while later, it finally threw a check engine light and forced me out of electric mode altogether, saying the hybrid system needed service. Ran the rest of the trail with the engine running no problem, and after a couple power cycles could run in electric mode again, and CEL went away after a day or two.

Just looking to see if anyone else had a similar experience.

I had the same experience yesterday. Off-roading in all electric was a terrible experience. @JeepCares. My wife actually said she needed a helmet. It was so jerky switching between 1-2-3. Jarring is really the word for it. After a bit, I also had the check engine light come on, and got the electric mode temporarily unavailable. Turn the vehicle on and off reset it, but what a pain and poor experience.

 

[CsD]

Also note, I’m on stock tires and suspension

 

[fogby]

I'm in Colorado in a rental with the etorque engine. Have a 4xe at home. We took the rental on some easy trails and when going up any steep, relatively long hills the engine started making a very loud noise. At first I thought it was an airplane flying over. I'm not familiar with this engine but was assuming the noise was due to heat and related cooling fans from the electric motor?

You should have seen a mountain biker that was within site when it started making this noise one time. He was looking all around.

Don't know if this helps or not, but I'm guessing these issues are similar at the core.

 

[michail]

Stock Sahara feels rough in 4L when in hybrid also. I was only practicing at the time. But it felt like it would pull a building down.

 

[JeepCares]

Took my 4xe Rubicon to run Cedar Tree #13 in Oregon two weeks ago, and had some questions from it.

Put her in 4-Low electric only mode to start the day, and first thing I noticed was it shifted REALLY hard between 1st and 2nd. I'm running 35" tires, but was wondering if anyone else has experienced this? Not sure if it's just the tires with the 4.10 rear gears and 4:1 low transfer case, but wasn't fun. But when I put it in e-save with the engine running, she shifted smooth as can be and ran great.

Also, when trying to run electric a while later, it finally threw a check engine light and forced me out of electric mode altogether, saying the hybrid system needed service. Ran the rest of the trail with the engine running no problem, and after a couple power cycles could run in electric mode again, and CEL went away after a day or two.

Just looking to see if anyone else had a similar experience.

I had the same experience yesterday. Off-roading in all electric was a terrible experience. @JeepCares. My wife actually said she needed a helmet. It was so jerky switching between 1-2-3. Jarring is really the word for it. After a bit, I also had the check engine light come on, and got the electric mode temporarily unavailable. Turn the vehicle on and off reset it, but what a pain and poor experience.

Hey, Wandering_Cascadian and CsD.

I would like to look into both of these concerns further. Please separately private message me with more details to get started.

Kate
Jeep Cares

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